No, I’m not being overly effusive about a USB to Lightning charging cable; I’m just referring to the brand name for a line of accessories. Awesome Cables used crowdfunding and some design smarts to create charging cables that are a bit different from what you’ll get from most other manufacturers.

Today we’re looking at a pair of these cables, both of which use a braided, non-tangle covering on the exterior. The Mamba Cable (US$30) is Apple MFi-certified, and what you’re going to love about this cable is its length – it’s 10 feet (3 meters) long! No more sitting next to a wall outlet while charging; you’ll be able to hang out at a distance.

The Lightning connector and USB plug both have aerospace aluminum shells, and there are good-sized stress relievers on both ends as well. Unlike the stock Apple cables, you’re not going to eventually see cracking where the cable meets the connectors, and that’s a good thing.

The Mamba Cables are expected to ship this month, and you can pre-order them now in either Lightning or micro-USB styles ($20) in black or glow-in-the-dark.

The other cable I tested was the 6-foot Braided Awesome Cable 2.0 ($22) in a fun Camo finish (note: the Camo finish was apparently still visible to my cats, who like to play with it). Only the black cables are showing as shipping at this time, but you’ll be able to get them in gold, silver and blue finishes soon as well as the Camo pattern.

There’s usually not a lot to say about charging cables – you plug ’em in and they work. But if you’re the type of person who is constantly plugging and unplugging charging cables and has had to replace short, cheap plastic cables frequently, spend a few bucks more and consider getting one of the Awesome Cables. I have to admit, they live up to their name.

Rating: 4 stars out of 4 stars possible